Top Shelf Tuesday - April 20

Tuesday is almost here, and you know what that means--it's time to start thinking about the latest hot releases. Luckily for you, we kill the hype and lay out what's tight. Word.

Source: Capcom

Games

You may not have heard of Monster Hunter before, but it’s currently one of the biggest game franchises in Japan—even though it’s only made a splash on Sony’s PSP. The series is coming exclusively to the Nintendo Wii on Tuesday in the form of Monster Hunter Tri. This online multiplayer RPG has you hunting (and slaying) massive creatures with three other teammates. It’s incredibly addictive, and best of all, Nintendo has dropped its ridiculous friends code system for this game—allowing you to make friends with anyone you come into contact with online. It may sound simple, but you can literally get dozens of hours from your purchase on this one. Plus, it’s one of those rare grown up games on the system. Happy hunting!

DVD

Source: 20th Century Fox/Lightstorm Entertainment

It’s finally here. The Avatar Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD combo can now be yours! In case you’ve been living in a box during the last year, Avatar is the epic science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron. The revolutionary flick stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, and Stephen Lang. Avatar is set in the year 2154, when humans are mining a precious mineral called Unobtanium on Pandora and expansion of the mining colony threatens the continued existence of a local tribe of Na'vi. Avatar refers to the genetically engineered Na'vi-human hybrid bodies used by a team of researchers to interact with the natives of Pandora. Anyways…we’ve all seen the movie and it’s awesome. So go buy it.

Music

Source: Frazer Harrison

Rise Up is the eighth studio album by hip-hop legends Cypress Hill and their first album of new material in over six years. The span of six years between Till Death Do Us Part and Rise Up marks Cypress Hill's longest gap between studio albums in their career. In addition to the group's main producer DJ Muggs, other producers include B-Real, Mike Shinoda, Jim Jonsin, Pete Rock, and DJ Khalil. Featured guests include Daron Malakian of System of a Down, Pitbull, Everlast, Evidence, Young De, Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, and Marc Anthony. Get it!